Alternative medicine on the rise in country

Abu Dhabi: There are more than 200 licensed Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine (TCAM) professionals practicing in the UAE. TCAM therapies such as acupuncture, homeopathy, ayurveda, hijama (cupping), chiropractic, osteopathy and naturopathy are recognised by the federal and local health authorities in the UAE.

In 2014 alone, 21 practitioners passed the UAE Ministry of Health’s TCAM qualifying exams, including six homeopathy specialists, two ayurveda practitioners, two hijama specialists and three chiropractic specialists. Dr Sassan Behjat, founder and principal consultant, Medblend Homeopathic Consultancy and Research Services, California, US, said the UAE has been aligning its TCAM policies for the past 20 years in line with the World Health Organisation’s Global Strategy on Traditional and Complementary Medicine.

Dr Behjat is also the chair of the Complementary, Alternative and Integrative Medicine Conference at the Arab Health Congress, the region’s largest healthcare exhibition and congress, which will be held between January 26-29 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

“Many homeopathic remedies in the UAE are now coded by the Health Authority - Abu Dhabi and the Dubai Drug Code. These remedies are made more readily available for the general population. More doctors have registered and regulated natural medicinal products in the formulary of their clinics and hospitals.”